1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to earthmoving equipment and, more particularly, to a self-loading earthmoving scraper with an ejector bottom.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Earthmoving equipment of the scraper type has been known for some time and has been used extensively on every conceivable type of project. After the bowl on the scraper has been filled with soil, the scraper is moved to a location where the soil is to be dumped and spread. Many different mechanisms have been devised for dumping the load where and when desired.
One of the principal difficulties faced by designers of the dumping mechanisms is the fact that a heavy load of soil is stacked on top of the floor or platform of the bowl which floor or platform must be moved in some way to permit the soil to drop from the bowl. In the Simmons et al. U.S. Pat. No. 3,564,737, a pair of floor plates are hinged together and at the same time a slidable third floor plate is located adjacent thereto. To dump the load, the hinge ends of the pair of plates are forced up into the load in the bowl as the third plate slides into a position beneath the upwardly hinged plates. Since the hinged ends of the plates meet the full resistance of the load, considerable force is required to operate the dumping mechanism.
Another solution to the problem is shown in the Campbell et al. U.S. Pat. No. 3,452,458 wherein the floor of the bowl is pivoted up along one wall of the bowl as the load spills down out of the bowl when the floor moves out of supporting relationship. Although this mechanism operates satisfactorily, the dumping mechanism must again overcome a considerable downwardly directed force to initiate dumping of the load.